Travel writer-turned-novelist Martin O'Brien is the author of the Daniel Jacquot series which features a French rugby player who's now a cop. RTE: Describe yourself in a sentence?

O'Brien: Affable and (preferably) indolent in a truly Irish way, with an abiding love of laughter and good company.

RTE: What's the one record you'd take to a desert island?

O'Brien: Higher and Higher, by Jackie Wilson. With a big amp to play it very, very loud!

RTE: What did you want to be when you were growing up?

O'Brien: A contented teller of tales.

RTE: Who's your oldest friend?

O'Brien: My old mate, Christopher, whom I've known since we started school together 43 years ago. He hasn't changed a jot. B******!

RTE: If I ruled the world...

O'Brien: Every child would have a magical childhood, and the certain prospect of happiness in their lives.

RTE: Which book do you wish you'd written?

O'Brien: There are so many, but Donna Tartt's The Secret History, followed very closely by John Fowles's The Magus, would have to be at the top of the list. They made me fair weep with jealousy.

RTE: What makes you angry?

O'Brien: Banning things - we used to live in a democracy and have a choice, but our glorious and cherished liberties are increasingly being chipped away bymealy-mouthed politicians and green-eyed do-gooders who should mind their own business.